*** Are you part of a non-profit or community organization looking for volunteers? Visit www.v2v.net/starbucks to post volunteer service opportunities for your community. Details at end of Playbook.***

Good Super Sunday XLIII (43) morning. And welcome to February. Kickoff is at 6:28 p.m. in Tampa following NBC’s SIX-hour pre-game from noon to 6 p.m. From NBC: “Matt Lauer will sit down with President Barack Obama for a live interview from the White House during NBC's Super Bowl Pregame Show. … Bruce Springsteen, who will be performing at halftime … [along with his E Street Band], will be the subject of an exclusive sit-down during pregame with Bob Costas. Nightly News anchor Brian Williams, a native of the Jersey shore, is contributing an essay on his idol Springsteen in the pregame show. … The Super Bowl halftime show is annually the most-watched musical performance.”

APNewsBreak: “ORLANDO, Fla. -- U.S. Rep. Adam Putnam says he will give up his seat in Congress to become a candidate for state agriculture commissioner. Putnam tells The Associated Press he will file paperwork to officially enter the race on Monday. He was the third most powerful Republican in the House until the last election, when he decided not to seek another term as chair of the House Republican Conference. He now wants to return to Tallahassee, where he was elected to the state House as a 22-year-old.The 34-year-old was first elected to Congress in 2000 and was the youngest member in the body at the time. His family has been farming in Florida for five generations.”

NEWSWEEK editor Jon Meacham, on the provocative gray-and-black cover laying out growing parallels between the wars in Afghanistan and Vietnam: “The dark and stubborn reality … is that there is no clear way ahead for us in Afghanistan. … To evoke the Vietnam analogy is not to be dovish or defeatist; it is, rather, to recognize that we are engaged in a war for noble ends that is not going well, and which may never go well given the circumstances. Like his predecessors four and five decades ago, President Obama faces two kinds of choices: bad and worse. … The most significant course correction, Fareed [Zakaria] believes, lies in distinguishing between the Taliban and Al Qaeda insofar as possible. Inevitably, there is some overlap, but a successful counterinsurgency requires that enough people buy into the idea that the military force--in this case the Americans--is a good thing for them.”

SCOOP – N.Y. Times’ Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Robert Pear, on p. 1: “President Obama’s choice for health secretary, Tom Daschle, was aware as early as last June that he might have to pay back taxes for the use of a car and driver provided by a private equity firm, but did not inform the Obama transition team until weeks after Mr. Obama named him to the health secretary’s post, senior administration officials said Saturday.”

WashPost lead story, By Ceci Connolly, Joe Stephens and R. Jeffrey Smith: “White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said last night that Obama stands behind his friend and confidant. ‘The president believes nobody's perfect but that nobody's hiding anything,’ Gibbs said.”

SENATOR KENNEDY, chairman of the Health committee, ISSUED A STATEMENT MAKING IT CLEAR THAT DASCHLE IS HEADED TO CONFIRMATION: “I know Tom Daschle. I know his character. And I look forward to his confirmation.”

L.A. Times lead story, “CIA retains power to abduct … Under executive orders issued by Obama recently, the CIA still has authority to carry out what are known as renditions, secret abductions and transfers of prisoners to countries that cooperate with the United States. Current and former U.S. intelligence officials said that the rendition program might be poised to play an expanded role going forward because it was the main remaining mechanism -- aside from Predator missile strikes -- for taking suspected terrorists off the street.”

THE NATION’S ESTABLISHMENT (Don Graham, Chairman Harman, Michael Dell, Henry Kravitz) lined up last night to touch the garment of President Obama, or at least shake his hand, at the 96th anniversary dinner of The Alfalfa Club, one of the capital’s most secretive and prestigious organizations. Everyone was there: George H.W. Bush, Sandra Day O’Connor, Henry Kissinger, Colin Powell, U2 drummer Larry Mullen Jr., hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons. It’s closed to press and off the record, but friends of Playbook report:

--The line to greet the President at the head table at the Capital Hilton was a breach of Alfalfa protocol, but was the latest reflection of the new President’s star power. Even Fred Malek, the McCain’s campaign’s national finance chairman, joined the queue. The well-wishers KEPT BUMPING THE CHAIR OF SENATOR McCAIN, who was on the floor, two seats away from the head table.

--Senator McCain presented the Alfalfa Party’s candidate for president of the United States: “Vernon E. Jordan Jr. – the Washington insider who has advised every president since Lyndon Johnson. Gee, I wish he would have advised ME.”

--Chief Justice Roberts absolved himself of the botched oath-giving by offering to swear in Alfalfa’s new president, then doing so WITH GIANT CUE CARDS.

--From excerpts of the President’s remarks released by the White House: “This dinner began almost one hundred years ago as a way to celebrate the birthday of General Robert E. Lee. If he were here with us tonight, the General would be 202 years old -- and very confused. … Now, this hasn’t been reported yet, but it was actually Rahm’s idea to do the swearing-in ceremony again. Of course, for Rahm, EVERY day is a swearing-in ceremony. But don't believe what you read. Rahm Emanuel is a real sweetheart. No, it's true. Every week the guy takes a little time away to give back to the community. Just last week he was at a local school, teaching profanity to poor children.”

--The President’s great unreleased lines: “I’m a casual admirer of Abraham Lincoln. … [He should have seen] my inaugural: He never drew crowds like that. … [To Senator Lieberman] No hard feelings because of the election. My door is always open. Feel free to drop by ANY SATURDAY AFTERNOON. … [To Gov. Palin] I never expected you to be PALLING AROUND with THIS crowd. I want to congratulate you on your Golden Globe for ‘30 Rock.’ …. [To Vernon Jordan] Just because a guy can give great speeches doesn’t mean he’s going to be a great president. … I see Chief Justice Roberts is here to administer my daily oath of office. … [On the similarity between Cheney and Biden] Dick Cheney is a man of few words. Joe Biden is also vice president. … [On the delay in getting a dog] The labradoodle we picked has some problems with back taxes. … [On ‘a better way for our time’ than blaming each other and passing the buck] I ask you to summon that spirit once more, and make future generations proud of what we did WHEN WE WERE TESTED BY HISTORY.”

--Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.), the new Alfalfa president: “Never before have so many, who have accomplished so much, traveled so far -- in coach. …. This is an august gathering. A newspaper recently published a list of the 25 people most responsible for the global economic meltdown. You know who you are. And it's good to see you here tonight. … I plan to follow Barack Obama's model, and diminish the role of the Vice President. … If our president didn't know then, he sure does now: Joe Biden is the reason Amtrak invented the quiet car. … Also, I'm a little frustrated: I didn't get to pick my VP. Instead, a group of people walked into my office and told me who it would be. Now I know how John McCain felt.”

--Sen. Joe Lieberman, outgoing president, concluded his introduction by saying: “I have the high honor to … issue an order that neither my mother, nor my father, nor my rabbi ever dreamed I would be able to issue: BRING ON THE LOBSTER.” (That would be the lobster Navarin in puff pastry with royal trumpet mushrooms and star anis.)

--More from Senator Lieberman: “We had hoped Vice President Cheney would be here tonight. I hope it’s not his back injury that’s keeping him away. Apparently, he hurt it moving some things out of his office. Personally, I had no idea that waterboards were so heavy. … I was so close [to being McCain’s vice president]: As close as Alaska is to Russia. … I hear that President Obama will soon be visiting the Washington offices of the New York Times as part of his search for a new house of Worship … On the other hand, I appreciated your humility when you chose not to arrive at your Inaugural ceremony by walking across the reflecting pool..”

--Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) is the group’s new vice president.

--Mr. Malek was the host for Sarah Palin, who was looking relaxed and hot. At the pre-dinner reception by Allbritton Communications Co. (Politico’s parent), she towered over Don Rumsfeld as they spoke.

--Upon spying super-lawyer Robert Barnett, one of his well-off clients got down on one knee in genuflection.

--Brad Freeman, close friend of President George W. Bush, always stayed at the White House when he came to town. In a reflection of the new era, this time Freeman had to get AN ACTUAL HOTEL ROOM. “They CHARGE YOU!” he told Playbook with mock shock.

--Columnist Clarence Page, attending for the first time, called the event an annual “safety valve of neutrality” for D.C. movers and shakers, and a reminder that this is “a mall town with a hell of a lot of power.”
LANDMARK IRAQ ELECTIONS – Reuters/Baghdad: “Iraqis held their most peaceful election since the fall of Saddam Hussein on Saturday, voting for provincial councils without a single major attack in a poll that demonstrated the country's dramatic security gains. … ‘The purple fingers have returned to build Iraq,’ Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki said after the polls closed, referring to the indelible ink stains on index fingers that show voters have cast their ballots. There was something of a holiday atmosphere in many parts of the country. In normally traffic-choked Baghdad, children took advantage of a ban on cars to play soccer in the streets.

PRESIDENT OBAMA, in a paper statement: “This important step forward should continue the process of Iraqis taking responsibility for their future.”

PUNDIT PREP (assist: ABC’s Jonathan Karl): These elections, repeatedly postponed, are an amazing accomplishment. These are the first free and fair local elections on a national scale since the invasion, and such elections are a rarity anywhere in the Arab world. Provincial elections have long been one of the most important benchmarks for Iraqi self-government and if President Bush were still in office, he would be trumpeting this. President Obama should make a big deal of the elections next week, as well, because it’s a major step to being able to withdraw troops.

LOOKAHEAD – AP: “Allies of Iraq's U.S.-backed prime minister appeared … to have made gains in the provincial elections … Initial results … are not expected for days. But reports by Iraqi media and interviews by The Associated Press suggest candidates backing Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki had strong showings in the crucial Shiite heartland in southern Iraq. If the indications prove true, it would strengthen al-Maliki's hand ahead of national elections later this year and reflect a shift away from the more religious parties dominating the country. Nationwide turnout was 51 percent.”

CORRECTION: One of yesterday’s Playbook references to PETER MAER was misspelled. Apologies.

TOP VIDEO – Tammy Haddad in Davos: “America’s First Basketball President ‘Has Game’: David Stern, President of the National Basketball Association, at Davos, tells TamCam America's first basketball president has game and it's not what the president basketball can do for basketball it's what basketball can do for the president. PLUS, despite the hard times ratings are up on all 3 networks.”
http://www.blog.newsweek.com/blogs/tamcam/default.aspx

COMING SOON TO A FRONT PAGE NEAR YOU – AFP, “Is Obama's post-partisan politics dead on arrival?” By Stephen Collinson: “After Barack Obama's first big win, the White House finds itself in the odd position of denying the new president has absorbed a power-sapping defeat. In the first test of Obama's vow to drain the bile from Washington politics and govern without the bitterness of the last two decades, the president appealed to Republicans to get behind his massive economic stimulus package. … This week, the Senate gets its chance, and undaunted, Obama is again on the hunt for Republican votes. ‘I will continue working with both parties so that the strongest possible bill gets to my desk,’ he told Americans in his weekly radio and video address on Saturday. ‘With the stakes so high we simply cannot afford the same old gridlock and partisan posturing in Washington. It's time to move in a new direction.’”

DRIVING THE DAY – AFP, “Obama, Biden host America's most exclusive Super Bowl fetes,” By Stephanie Griffith: “The most coveted place to watch the Super Bowl football championship this year will not be a swank stadium skybox, but inside the White House, where President Barack Obama will host Sunday's most exclusive game-viewing party. … The event is seen as the latest effort by Obama to bridge a rancorous partisan divide in Washington. ‘You'll see Democrats and Republicans. You'll undoubtedly see Steelers fans and Cardinals fans -- once again bringing people together,’ White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said at a press briefing Friday. Fifteen lawmakers have been invited to watch the game pitting the underdog Arizona Cardinals against the Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania) Steelers. About half the invitees hail from one of the two contending states.”

THE V.P.’s GUEST LIST, from the White House: “The Vice President and Dr. Jill Biden will host members of the House and Senate, along with their families, at the Naval Observatory to watch the Super Bowl. The following elected officials will be guests … Sen. Max Baucus, Sen. Tom Carper, Sen. Kent Conrad, Sen. John Kerry, Sen. Bill Nelson, Sen. Chuck Schumer, Rep. Robert Brady, Rep. Jim Clyburn, Rep. Steny Hoyer, Rep. John Larson.”

SPORTS BLINK – BULLETIN, 8:15 a.m.: “Rafael Nadal beat Roger Federer 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (3), 3-6, 6-2 at the Australian Open in a match lasting four and a half hours. It was Nadal's third straight win over Federer in a Grand Slam final.” – N.Y. Times

--“ The Pittsburgh Steelers go for their record sixth Super Bowl title while the Arizona Cardinals seek their first. The Steelers are 6 1/2 -point favorites in Sunday's game.”

-- “Hair-raising! Super Bowl could see dreaded tackles: Try this in high school or at the mall, and you'd have an all-out brawl. But at the Super Bowl, it's perfectly OK: Go ahead and grab Larry Fitzgerald or Troy Polamalu by their long hair, then yank 'em down. ‘It's legal. It is a body part, like someone's arm or leg,’ NFL head of officials Mike Pereira said. Hmmm, turns out the most dreaded tackle when Pittsburgh and Arizona meet Sunday may not be one of those teeth-jarring, helmet-to-helmet hits. By a hair, it might be the prospect of seeing a player taken down by his tresses. Want proof? Search YouTube for ‘Polamalu’ and ‘hair’ and ‘tackle,’ and watch the first thing that appears. There's a 27-second clip from 2006 of the Steelers star being ripped to the ground by his free-flowing locks after an interception.”

--“A ticket cost $6 when Bart Starr, Vince Lombardi and the Green Bay Packers beat Kansas City 35-10 in [Super Bowl I]. The top ticket for this weekend's match-up between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Arizona Cardinals goes for $1,000. Now, the game is by far the biggest sporting event in America, a semi-national holiday. But back then, before the original National Football League and upstart American Football League merged, many fans weren't sure how to view it. Or watch it, really, since CBS and NBC both televised the first one. In fact, it was officially the AFL-NFL World Championship Game in the 1960s. Commissioner Pete Rozelle preferred ‘The Big One’ but that got nixed. The late Lamar Hunt, among the AFL's founders, suggested ‘Super Bowl’ as a temporary fix. He got the name idea after seeing his daughter bounce a SuperBall.”

*** The Starbucks “I’m In” campaign received a huge response from community organizations looking to be included in. Starbucks V2V is an online social network that serves as a catalyst for conversation and connection that inspires people to contribute to causes greater than themselves.

Starbucks and V2V have come together in a unique partnership based on similar values and a shared vision. This space is the “virtual third place” that extends beyond the four walls of the store to help partners and customers showcase the amazing things they are doing in their communities. This special place fosters creativity, collaboration amongst new friends, and inspiration to make our world a better place to live. Together, Starbucks and V2V are “Redefining Community.” ***

A Point to Ponder: Just as the elections of Obama for the Dems, and Steele for the GOP, have opened the door for minorities and changed the political scene, have the appointments of Geithner and Daschle opened opportunities for tax evaders...that is, average Americans... at the highest-levels of government administration?

One of the small programs in the stimulus bill, which no one seems to have noticed and complained about yet, is 'The Installation of Official NBA Basketball Hoops (with Nets and Backboards) above all White House Waste Baskets and Shredding Machines'.

There is an easy way to stop all the republican bit*hing and moaning about the stimulus bill. All it requires is a little white lie, and, after all, as many have said, 'Politics is the Art of Lying'. What the Dems need to do is say that a secret part of the stimulus bill includes 'over a hundred billion dollars' for nuclear weapons to use in immediately attacking Cuba, Venezuela, Palestine (other than the majority occupied by Zionists), and France. What republican could resist voting for that? And after the bill has passed, with full bi-partisan support, the Dems come clean, unlike The Dummy's administration, and admit they lied, and that 'There was no plan for nuking France, or the others'. OK, so it would have been a lie about starting wars, as the NeoConZionist bushies lied about starting the Iraq war, but with a big twist, and the American people would forgive the Dems.

Here is yet another missed opportunity for Obama to walk the talk. Obama should have invited to his super bowl party, Americans who have lost their jobs, homeless from the streets of Illinois and Washington, and what about military men and women returning from anywhere they are serving. No, why would Obama do something like that? Those were mere words he chanted during the campaign, change we can we believe in. This administration continues to be, Clinton's third term.

Another Point to Ponder: During the time you are watching the Super Bowl, chances are good that more than one Iraqi child will be blown to bits, and/or die from previous wounds, courtesy of your tax dollars at work, thanks to The Dummy's lies. And the support of the very same republicans who are opposing the Stimulus Bill, 'Because it's too big, too wasteful'. WTF! The Iraq war is more costly than the stimulus, is a major reason the economy collapsed making the stimulus necessary, and what could anyone imagine more wasteful than the Iraq war? How much would it be worth to avoid slaughtering over 4,000 American servicepeople? Let alone hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqi infants, children, women, and men? The folks of the party of the NeoConZionist bushies should hang their heads in perpetual shame, they have disgraced themselves, and continue to do so, lying and denying or ignoring their perfidy.

Dear Barack Obama, So the dinner was for Robert E. Lee's B-day? Alfalfa? does that make someone Buckwheat? My biggest problem is whether my unemployment hits the debit card in time to pay my rent on time. What's yours?Karl